


Shopping For Empty Windows

by Ahhuya



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Prostitution, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Prostitute Keith, Prostitution, Sendak is not here for any romance but h is the one who gets to fuck Keith the most..., Shiro makes a lot of bad decissions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-08
Updated: 2019-04-13
Packaged: 2019-11-14 01:20:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18042746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ahhuya/pseuds/Ahhuya
Summary: He leans back against the wall. “So what will it be? Do I need to charge you for watching or is there anything else to your liking?”“What can I do if I’d say yes?” Shiro asks.“Anything you want, darling.” Keith grins. “Just use a condom and don’t leave any permanent marks. Next to that, I’m all yours.”At 25, Shiro wants nothing more than to graduate. At the end of the year, he takes on an internship at Daibazaal at their leading sector in business intelligence. Under Sendak’s strong rule, the internship is not what he had hoped it to be. Yet nothing is more shocking than the department’s location. Just across the street is a tourist attraction Shiro has sworn to never visit, until he accidentally stumbles across the man of his dreams behind a red window.[Red Light District AU]





	1. Black in Red

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to... whatever this is...  
> I really needed to post something and since this AU is the only thing I have stuff completed for, I guess I'm posting it earlier than originally planned.  
> Thanks so much to Shipnuggets and Abyssinia for reading over for me, because I have no idea what I'm doing. So let me make a few quick notes first.  
> 1) this is my first time writing anything nsfw and I might be putting of the actual explicit parts for a while so I can figure out how to actually do that  
> 2) I have no idea how businesses work, I'm a history student...  
> 3) there is beautiful art of this fic that I commissioned by Mondaijo! Please give that some love [here](https://twitter.com/mondaijo/status/1089655100346458112) since it was what got me to actually write more for this AU  
> 4) Shiro is going to make a lot of stupid decissions, but trust me when I say he knows when he can stop
> 
> Shiro's situation in this fic is kind of like my own, inspired by the fact that my own internship is right next to the Red Light District and my mind couldn't get rid of the idea.  
> And with that, I guess we're good to go!

At 25, Shiro wants nothing more than to graduate. His thesis is done, a 30 thousand word analysis on economic competition within the search to a sustainable future. Perhaps it ended up being too long, but with a mentor like Slav, the amount of words never was a problem to begin with. There aren’t enough words to talk about every possible way someone can design their plans, as much as both of them would want to.

Despite all that, he finds himself in front in the sleek black box that is Daibazaal’s business intelligence office. It’s anyone’s dream to work there, especially for the students wishing to stand out from a crowd. An internship is a student’s life and death combined in one, and Shiro is ready to lay it all out in front of the most intimidating people he’s met in his life.

The building is nothing compared to Daibazaal’s headquarters, towering high above the city on the side of town. But between the simple set of smaller, brown bricked houses stacked against it, it sticks out. The old building has been torn down a few years ago, when Daibazaal bought the plot. There was no room for an old set of bricks, despite protests from those living close by. Any trace of that is long gone now, erased through the power of money.

He takes a deep breath and walks to the reception on the outside of the building. The front gate is locked, and can only be opened with a key card he doesn’t have yet.

“Good morning,” he smiles at the receptionist, a woman probably around his own age, “I have an appointment with mister Sendak today. It’s my first day here.”

She doesn’t look up. “Your name?”

“Takashi Shirogane.”

“Come in.” The door clicks open in front of him and  he steps inside. The woman has moved to her window on the inside, phone in hand as she calls around the building.

He has seen Sendak once. A wall of a man, radiating power all around him. He doesn’t sign papers that don’t involve millions of GAC. Even the signature underneath the internship contract was signed by a colleague instead. But no professor saw an issue with that. Perhaps that’s why it feels like an honor to get some time in Sendak’s schedule. Something Shiro almost can’t believe he has gotten right now.

“You can go the third floor, someone will pick you up there.” The woman tells him as she lays down the phone. Through the small opening in her glass cabin, she slips him a pass. A temporary entrance through the access gates. They know how to lock in their visitors. A visit to the building doesn’t even feel like a good thing anymore.

The walls are covered in nothing but paint and big windows. The building is smaller than the main headquarters under their founder’s command. But still, Sendak and his team have a strong presence in the middle of the city, underneath headquarter’s shadow.

The grey, almost metallic walls greet him when steps out of the elevator. Whoever once built his house here before, must not have imagined it to be replaced with a solid prison of money. It doesn’t feel right, but who is Shiro to complain about that before his first day has even started.

It isn’t Sendak who picks him up from the hallway. Of course it isn’t, the man must be too busy in meetings.  The middle aged man who guides him through the small maze introduces himself as Thace, his primary supervisor for when Sendak isn’t available. Which means always.

Thace shows him around the floor first. He gets a small office at the street side, shared with two others. The office is empty, but the names of Haxus and Hepta on the door will have to do for an introduction.

He doesn’t see Sendak while Thace helps him set up around the place. No one else tries to come around. They’re in their own world, pacing back and forth talking about expressions that have come around lectures once or twice. “These aren’t important, no one really uses them” the professor had said before moving on to the next slide. He never gave Shiro the time to study them in detail. Like those five years have all been for nothing.

“You can come in tomorrow if you want.” Thace tells him after he’s handed over the key card and welcoming documents. The _if you want_ is told so indifferently that it lingers on in his mind while he makes his way back to the subway. He needs to make his hours, and who wouldn’t want to be a part of Daibazaal’s imperium?

**…**

The day he gets to see Sendak, is the day where it all makes sense. People get out of their way for the man when he walks through the hallways and settles in his office for the day. A handful of them don’t care. Haxus and Hepta, who focus more on themselves than any question Shiro has for them, along with Thace walk around the floor in Sendak’s strong shadow without budging down.

He doesn’t expect to be called to Sendak’s office two weeks after starting his assignment. The room is covered in purple hues, the man’s scarred face hides in the dark. He’s a soldier before being a businessman. Only the suit and expensive decorating say different.

He takes a seat when Sendak motions him to do so. The air is heavy. With one eye, Sendak can still easily see through him.

“Your work is exceptional.” Straight to the point, Sendak cuts away the hanging dread. “Our numbers have gone up the last week with your analysis.”

“Thank you, sir.” Shiro says.

“Make sure to work hard and keep it up. Your future might just be with Daibazaal.”

Shiro nods, words falling short.

“You can go.” It takes the actual dismissing to make Shiro realize he shouldn’t waste Sendak’s precious time. He thanks him, before he turns back to his own room. A future with Daibazaal is a dream. Unconsciously, he adds an extra hour to his shift.

**…**

When he gets out, it’s already dark. The streets are bustling with people making their way to their bar for the night. Shiro doesn’t know what it is that tells him to follow behind them through the street. Maybe it’s the need for some fresh air, not wanting to spend those precious five minutes in the subway when the walk to the trainstation can give him some peace of mind.

That was the plan at least. By the time he can’t  see the black building anymore, he’s bathing in red light and posters of girls in almost no clothing. Crowds form in front of the windows. It’s a tourist attraction, he knows that. One time, he was one of the many people laughing at the inexperienced people who were angry at the fact they were somehow set up by a poor hooker. Now, despite not being interested in any girl, he can see where the temptation comes from. Eyes forward, he can’t help but hear the soft knocks against the glass. He doesn’t look at them. All he cares about is his late train home and a cup of coffee as he washes away his stress with a good book.

“Where are you going, darling?” It isn’t a girl calling when he turns a corner in the district. Shiro feels his eyes involuntarily leave the street and focus on the window his feet have stopped in front of.

In his early student days, Shiro has seen enough tight leather on a man’s body to know when one is or isn’t meant for it. The man tapping the glass on the inside with his feet, was clearly born to wear this little amount of clothes. The leather on his lower body makes whatever is left to the viewer’s imagination a beautiful dream.

“Are you in a hurry?” The man frowns, his black hair falling loosely over his shoulder. “I’d love a few minutes of your time.” His smile is soft, too teasing for the beginning of the night.

Shiro stares. He doesn’t mean to, it’s inappropriate to stare at a window for so long and not buy the goods inside. But the man is captivating. Only another knock against the window gets him out of his daze.

“I’m not a fancy designer coat, so do you want to come in or not?”

Shiro doesn’t answer. Instead, he walks, almost runs, to his train, hoping to forget about the sight of red light illuminating pale skin.

**…**

The same night, he makes himself a promise to never walk through the red light district again. But as days grow longer in the office, there is no way he can escape it. Not when he knows his supervisors only take the route through the district. For them, walking around it has never been an option. They’re successful businessmen, one or two prostitutes can’t hurt that reputation. They’re almost expected to step inside.

Yet Shiro, the student who has already gotten in trouble once for accidentally flirting at a faculty party, knows he can’t damage his nonexistent reputation. So he works, and drowns himself in even more assignments under the shaking head of his professor and the praise of the business. Thousands of GAC go across his screen every second, stores go bankrupt by the press of a button, and all because Shiro can’t afford to miss out on the extra credentials or Sendak’s praise.

He doesn’t want to wait for Sendak to close the building when he’s stuck too long on the hundreds of emails from Vrepit Sal’s about their latest sales. Yet when the clock hits 8pm, there is no avoiding the heavy hand knocking against the door opening, telling him to shut off the computer and get outside. He leans back with a sigh. It’s cold outside, a chill February breeze, but in the distant red light, the thick layers of clothes don’t matter.

“Do you have a car coming for you?” Sendak asks when they both get outside.

Shiro shakes his head. “I’m taking the subway to the station.”

“My car is parked a few streets away, we can walk together.” Sendak says as he takes the first step. Of course he would walk towards the district, Shiro thinks, taking the easy way out could never be an option.

They don’t speak during the walk. For once, Shiro is glad for the distraction around them. Women winking at Sendak for some fun, other girls knocking against glass to beg Shiro for a quick night. When Sendak finally branches off to get to his ride, Shiro is left with mixed feelings. He doesn’t care if Sendak is actually going to his car or decides to have fun with a girl instead, being alone in the middle of rows of illuminated windows is worse than walking next to an economic monster.

He sighs, cold clouds of breath dancing before his face. He’s already too far to turn around and head back to his usual subway. They already passed most buildings to begin with. So he walks, hoping deep down that the man who haunts his darkest dreams has moved to a different window.

He hasn’t. The small corner window glows hot. People stop in front of it, before they come to the conclusion that if they are to go broke on a prostitute, a helpless immigrant girl is more to their taste. Shiro doesn’t want to stay either, but for the complete opposite reason. He knows the man can take all of him, all he owns and he’d let him. His body and mind have stopped being on one line a long time ago.

There’s even less clothing on the man’s body now. A poor excuse of lingerie and a set of thigh high stockings. They’re even better than leather, the soft, black lace a beautiful accessory Shiro would love to tear of his body.

The man leans forward on his stool, fingers playfully holding onto the edge.  “Changed your mind?” He smirks. The strap of his bra falls over his shoulder, as if the amount of showed skin isn’t big enough already.

“What is your name?” Shiro asks instead. A mistake, now he’ll get attached to a name along with the pretty face and body.

“Whatever you want to call me, dear.” The man says, his foot tapping against the other side of the glass. “But if you want something to feel closer, call me Keith.”

Shiro doesn’t want to be closer. He doesn’t want to be in front of the window in the first place. His train won’t wait for him, but neither will Keith as he impatiently moves around his barstool.

“So, what do you want?” Keith asks.

“I don’t want anything.”

“I’ve seen you watching, big guy. One stop I get, but you don’t look a second time if you have no hidden intent.” Keith’s foot knocks against the side of the window, where the small piece of paper with his prices is listed, “Just tell me what you want and I can give it to you.”

“I don’t-“

“300 GAC for a blowjob, sound good to you? Don’t take too long to make up your mind, my regulars could show up any minute and I wouldn’t want to miss out on you.”

Shiro doesn’t know if his face can turn a darker shade of red. He doesn’t want to see himself in the reflection of the window.

“I should go.” He says as he walks away, leaving Keith behind in the window. It gets hard to ignore the tugging in his pants, and he immediately regrets the long way home.


	2. Words Left Unspoken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to update this so much sooner, but life became a lot more hectic than I expected (along with bangs and zines that have some priority with wrting as well...). My schedule probably won't be back until June, but I missed this fic so much that I made some room to at least update one chapter again. And I'm glad others enjoy this silly thing as well.  
> Nothing spicy or anything happening yet, but Shiro gets to be a disaster and Matt will suffer along this time.

Sometimes Shiro has a hatred towards Matt. Like the time he and Veronica started a party in their small living room when exams came around. Or the one where he ‘accidentally’ covered the shower in green slime, left over from a study group. Whatever it is Math students do, Shiro has long figured out it involves the worst parties.

In this moment however, Shiro isn’t sure if he hates or loves Matt. They’re lucky Veronica is out drinking with her friends. Sulking over a prostitute is not what he wants her to know him for. It isn’t his thing to do. It’s why he’s walked on, despite a good offer to come in.

“Daibazaal that bad?” Matt asks as he sits down at their dining table in front of Shiro. It’s one of the few pieces of furniture they own, the rest thrown out during the last party in their flat. A couple of chairs still lay broken in front of the entrance of the building.

Shiro shakes his head. Sure, Daibazaal tires him out, the jobs get longer and more tedious every time. But at least that brings him a future. Keith doesn’t. If anything, Keith breaks everything Shiro’s worked for, without any hesitation.

“Just some… stuff.”

“A cute guy?” Matt raises his eyebrows. When Shiro looks up at him, he laughs. “I’m sorry but your face says it all when you’re into someone.”

“It’s nothing.” Shiro sighs, his fingers draw circles over the cup of coffee in front of him. He shouldn’t drink caffeine this late, but with the weekend coming up, he doesn’t feel like sleeping. It will only bring Keith’s face to his mind.

“Not nothing. You are hiding something.” Matt sits down in front of him, chin leaning on his folded hands. “Don’t tell me he’s already taken.”

“Worse.” Shiro groans.

“Nothing can be worse than that.”

“He’s a prostitute, Matt. I  _ can’t  _ do that.”

Matt lifts his head “That’s it? You like a prostitute?”

“It’s a big deal, okay? Going to Keith could ruin everything.”

“He has a name, I doubt you care about this reputation of yours if you call him by his name already.”

“I didn’t ask for it, he just gave it to me.”

Matt hums. “Sure he did.”

“So what if I asked about it. I didn’t want to see him, I just happened to walk by.”

“And if you walk by another time?”

“I won’t.” Shiro states, firmly. Like walking by was ever an option to begin with.  “I’m not walking back through the district again.”

“You can’t avoid him forever. We both know how bad you are when crushing on someone.” Two months of fearing going to class and then complaining about it during dinner every day. He remembers those times where both his flatmates would disappear for sudden dinners outdoors. All for a relationship resulting in nothing. Two hookups and a badly cooked dinner of mac and cheese: the absolute student romance.

“That was different,” Shiro groans. It wasn’t as strong as this. “I’m sure this just a fantasy that settled itself in my mind.”

“How about this then,” Matt leans closer, “you go to him, get laid and once you realize it was all just a simple fantasy, you can move on with your life.”

It almost sounds like a good idea. But Shiro knows it’ll be futile. It won’t kill the fantasy. If anything, it will only make it stronger.

**…**

As if prophesied by Matt, Shiro finds himself in front of the window a few days later. It’s more red now with a curtain closing off the room behind it. Only the sheet of paper with familiar prices tell him that Keith is doing business there tonight.

The other side of the street has a peep show going on. Shiro sighs and walks towards it to keep moving around the district without looking desperate for one person, even if he’s too tired to care. The days at Daibazaal get longer every time. His workload has tripled: a compliment according to Haxus. To Shiro, it’s the perfect example of using an intern as free labor. From behind his desk, Sendak watches his every move, stopping by in the early to see if he’s doing his job before disappearing again for the rest of the day.

Today has been no different. He’s already on the double amount of the hours he needs and is the last to leave every day before Sendak. He won’t wait for Sendak another night, he can’t let himself walk with his supervisor through the red light once more. It’s bad enough that he knows how to navigate through the alleyways that are supposed to lead him to Keith, dangling his feet in thin air with boredom.

The peepshow is a sore sight in return to what his dreams supplement him with. Fees are low, but despite trying to seem interested while he studies the prices, he can’t imagine enjoying the sight of people fuck in front of his face. Still, enough people enter, not batting him an eye as they walk by. When Shiro decides to cross the street again, he sees the curtain has been drawn aside. Keith is back in the window, leaning against glass as he stretches.

Shiro takes a couple of deep breaths before he goes back to the window.

“Hey, beautiful,” Keith grins, as he pulls the window a little, “were you waiting for me?”

“I-“ He falls silent again. Up close, he’s drawn back the fantasy. Tight shorts and a bright jacket over a bare chest are a fashion statement Shiro is falling in love with. No jacket should be cropped like that, or worn over nothing but skin. But Keith doesn’t care about rules, like he doesn’t care about the fact that everyone is watching him.

“Don’t worry about it.” Keith laughs. “It’s a busy night, sometimes you just have to wait.” He leans back against the wall. “So what will it be? Do I need to charge you for watching or is there anything else to your liking?”

“What could I do if I’d say yes?” Shiro asks.

“Anything you want, darling.” Keith grins. “Just use a condom and don’t leave any permanent marks. Next to that, I’m all yours.”

Hesitantly, he nods. The window opens and Shiro steps inside. Curtains close and it’s just him and Keith in the red covered room. On the way, Shiro pulls out his wallet, money in hand.

Keith leads him through the small hallway in the back, to a bedroom with white, fluorescent sheets on top of plastic bed covers. His hands run across Shiro’s arm, trailing each muscles as they move to his chest. They grab the money and put it away on the small table against the wall.

“So, what will it be? You have fifteen minutes.” He purrs, leaning so close that Shiro can almost feel his hot breath through his coat.

“I just want to talk.”

Keith stops. “You can’t be serious.”  His hand fall back to his side, defeated. “You’d pay me to talk?”

“I can pay you extra if you want?” Shiro frowns, but the reply of a soft laugh is ensuring.

“Don’t worry about that.” Keith waves him away and lays down on the bed. “But if you think I’ll give you my life story, that isn’t my thing with customers. Whatever is troubling you, however, let it all out. You already paid.”

The bed is awfully soft when Shiro sits down. He doesn’t want to think about how Keith drowns in the mattress every time someone takes him, yet the image is hard to remove once it settles in the back of his mind.

“Well,” Shiro sighs, “I’m a student.”

Keith nods, silently pressing for Shiro to go on.

“In business, I’m uh,”  he scratches the back of head, looks at the mirror reflecting himself on the bed and turns to the red light on the ceiling instead, trying to ignore the other mirror attached there. There’s nowhere in the room that doesn’t scream sex, and he’s convinced his fifteen minutes will be over before he gets to speak a decent word. “I’m an intern for Daibazaal. I want to graduate afterwards.”

“You do know most people don’t tell their life’s details to a random prostitute, right? But don’t worry,” Keith grins as he fully lays down and lets his head hit the pillow, “I know some other guys from there. It’s a fancy place. Pays well.”

“Interns don’t get paid that much. We just do a lot of work and hope we get a good report. It can be a lifesaver once you get out on the job market. Especially with Daibazaal. Just the name makes people want to hire you. Sendak is already trying to promise me a job there.”

“Ain’t I glad I never went through any of that.” Keith laughs and looks over at Shiro. “And don’t try to get a sob story out of this. I got a degree, great place, but it wasn’t for me. This,” He rolls over to his back, kicks his legs into the air and lets them spin around every direction, “now this is where I feel at home.”

“What did you go to university for?”

“Astronomy.” He shrugs, “But no customer is every interested in having a lecture about nebulas. It’s a pretty big mood killer during an expensive fuck. Those minutes are valuable.”

“I would.” Shiro mutters, hoping his voice disappears with each word he says.

“Well, there’s no time for that now.” Keith grins as he holds up the clock. “Fifteen minutes are over.”

“Are they?” Shiro frowns. Sure time goes faster in good company, but fifteen minutes take longer than a few sentences and a couple of smiles.

“No,” Keith laughs and sets the clock back down again, “but you were starting to cross the line. I’m not here to share my life, remember. I’m not some kind of therapist.”

“Right.” Shiro sighs.

“It’s not too late to switch for something quick if you want to. You have a few more minutes.”

Shiro shakes his head. “I’m good. Talking is good.”

“If you say so.” Keith  shrugs. He rolls around the bed and sluggishly wraps himself in his sheets, only to have them falling off again when he sits up against the wall. The white sheet becomes a puddle in his lap, a lovely pillow for Shiro to rest on. But he doesn’t. His dignity can’t take any more.

“What do you want to talk about, or do you really just want to  _ talk _ ?”

Shiro takes a deep breath. “Do you like cats?”

**…**

The sound of loud beeps indicating the fifteen minutes are up are a godsend. Another minute and he wouldn’t be able to resist the blankets any longer. There’s no looking away when every part of the room is covered in mirrors. All manage to point back at Keith’s crotch.

“If you ever want that nebula lecture, you know where to find me.”  Keith blows him a kiss as Shiro steps outside.

“Shirogane?” A familiar voice calls out to him from behind. Oh no, he thinks to himself as he turns around. Only one voice sounds that low and commanding when it talks to him.

“Hey, big man.” Keith greets Sendak with a wink. “You were late, he got his fun before you.”

“I see you have a good taste,” Sendak grins, his hand cupping Keith’s behind. “You won’t find a better whore in this district.”

“Won’t find a better guy than you either.” Keith leans into the touch. “You don’t want to waste your precious minutes talking, do you?”

“Never.” Sendak grumbles, his hand trailing down further across bare skin. “I’ll see you again tomorrow, Shirogane.”

Shiro nods. Even when Sendak has gone inside and the curtain is once again closed, he keeps staring. The image of Keith spreading his legs for a man like Sendak, earning money by loving one of the worst men Shiro has ever gotten to know, makes him sick. But it’s a job Keith has chosen, a legal job Shiro had no place condoning.

**Author's Note:**

> Come talk to me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Ahhuya) or [Tumblr](https://aulra.tumblr.com/)


End file.
